Historically, dictatorship has always shaped Russia. It started with the Romanovs. A Russian dynasty that reigned for over 300 years, witnessing Russia’s ascent and helping to facilitate its downfall.
The dynasty’s deterioration was birthed from stagnation; Russia remained at a developmental halt, it suffered endless military losses from World War I, and the people's needs were not met. The threads of autocracy have always been tangled. In the case of the Romanovs, it can be seen in the lead-up to and aftermath of their downfall.
The last reigning Tsar, Nicholas II, was unsuccessful because he was a weak-willed autocrat who easily folded to external opinion. He attempted to utilize his “divine” right to rule, but a series of poor judgments and a poorer public image eroded his absolute authority, leading to the spread of communism and the dissolution of the Russian monarchy.
The aftermath of World War I and the Russian Revolution brought the rise of communism and the creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). Built on the ambitions of Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks, Russia began to mend. Russia’s involvement in World War I came to a close with the Russo-German treaty of Brest-Litovsk, and Russia was to become the first formal “Socialist” state.
Despite Lenin’s status as a revolutionary “for the people”, he wielded cruel methods, ruthlessly attempting to dismantle the capitalist system and forcefully implementing harsh economic measures. This stream of aggression continued with his successor, Stalin, until the dissolution of the USSR.
Stalin's government acted separately from the people. Stalin surrendered individual wants and needs in favor of the state as an entity. Stalin also sought to further establish communism, with forced industrialization and “collectivization” implemented through cruel measures and crueler punishments.
These programs were enforced by a mixture of police brutality and censorship through the 30s. Stalin limited creative expression, minimizing intellectualism, and persecuting religious groups as well as non-Russians by deporting them to Siberia. Stalin was constantly worried about disloyalty, which manifested in a very controlled state with no room for political or personal differences. Centralization was strictly enforced, and the Stalin agenda reigned supreme.
Stalin was succeeded by numerous others, of which Mikhail Gorbachev, the final leader of the USSR, was the most influential.
Gorbachev’s succession came with the fall of the USSR, the Berlin Wall, communism in Europe, and the end of the Cold War.
Gorbachev ushered in a new era for Russia by establishing a liberated system of political discussion. He released political dissenters from Soviet imprisonment and expanded freedom of the press. This was further enforced by Gorbachev’s decision to open the USSR, and can be labeled as his moving past the autocratic tendencies of his predecessors.
In doing so, international travel and international business ventures were encouraged, and previously off-limits investing opportunities became available to foreign markets. This laid the groundwork for the economic reforms pursued by Gorbachev; however, it was still not enough. To fully extricate the USSR from the soviet economic system, he pursued political liberalization, hosting the USSR’s first free election, further loosening the government’s grip on Russia.
However, this new era of political and social freedoms allowed the people to criticize the government and reflect on the legitimacy of Soviet rule. Gorbachev also experienced backlash from less politically moderate individuals. On the liberal side, they were disappointed with his more moderate reforms, demanding immediate and absolute action. On the communist-leaning side, they disliked how Gorbachev was distancing the state from the far-reaching policies of the Stalin era. Additionally, his economic policy was widely disparaged due to Russia’s increasing foreign debt and the disruption of the previously improved economy.
Due to political dissenters, Gorbachev suffered an attempted coup, which marked the end of the USSR. He resigned in 1991, and the state was officially dissolved the next day, with various annexed states declaring their independence.
Russia's history is vast and varied, with the government constantly evolving to match the times. The fall of the Russian imperial family kick-started the fall of European dynasties, with the communist-led dictatorship establishing the first socialist/communist state, and the democratic-leaning policy of Gorbachev marking the end of the decades-long Cold War.
Dictatorship and autocracy are threaded into Russia’s history, layering upon one another. Lenin disbanded the Monarchy, yet still disregarded the people. Stalin followed Lenin’s Marxist policies, and Gorbachev used Stalin as a guide on what to avoid. And presently, Russian President Putin is returning to a dictatorship in line with Stalin's harsh policies and fervent censorship.
Despite the persistent grasp of autocracy, in looking at Russia’s history, it is evident how cyclical history truly is. Dictatorship is dependent on the political climate, and its permanence can truly only be contested by the will of the people.